The Great Book of Music

theoretical teachings and philosophy, due to their connection to the natural sciences and the sciences of logic. Credit belongs to them for defining the foundations and principles of this science.

As for the Arabs, they adopted music from the Persians and from Greek works which they translated in the late second century of the Hijra Approximately the late 8th century CE. The Hijri calendar (AH) marks the Islamic era.. They then introduced to it what would refine the craft of melodies craft of melodies: "sina'at al-alhan," the technical method of composing and arranging musical notes. in the Arabic language. Thus, they chanted poetry and linked sounds to various types of rhythm original: "iqa'," referring to the temporal patterns and beats in music., giving rise to poignant melodies unlike any that had come before. Among them appeared gifted geniuses who possessed a great degree of imaginative power, proficiency, and skill in the crafting and performance of melodies. There also emerged authors renowned for their original thought, strong perception, and deep study into the arts of this craft.

The most famous of those among the Arabs who wrote about music is the philosopher Abu Nasr Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Tarkhan al-Farabi, who died in the year 339 AH 950 CE. Regarding this subject, he authored the book "The Great Book of Music" original: "Kitab al-Musiqa al-Kabir", which is the book we are concerned with in this introduction. It is considered the most complete work written by the Arabs on music from that time until our present day.

When we mention anything in this introduction regarding the origins, principles, and sciences of music, we take what is contained in this book as a reference to guide our definitions. It has been made clear that music and poetry belong to the same genus In a philosophical sense, a broad category or class of things.: that of composition, meter, and the proportion between movement and stillness movement and stillness: "al-haraka wa-l-sukun," terms used in both Arabic prosody (poetry) and music to describe the presence or absence of a beat or vowel sound.. Both are crafts that express themselves through rhythmic categories. The difference between them is clear in that poetry is concerned specifically with the arrangement of...